ASCA News Digest

Published June 24, 2025

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Ascension announced a deal Tuesday morning to acquire ambulatory surgery management services company AmSurg, marking a leap forward in the Catholic giant’s push to expand outpatient capacity. The deal would bring more than 250 outpatient ambulatory surgery centers in 34 states that AmSurg manages into Ascension’s network of hospitals and other care sites.
Fierce Healthcare (06/17/25) Dave Muoio
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Time is running out to participate in ASCA’s 2025 Salary & Benefits Survey. This survey collects national, regional and state data on 20+ ASC positions and is a vital tool that assists ASCs in attracting and retaining the best employees.

Data submission closes next Monday, June 30. It is free to participate and the survey takes less than 15 minutes to complete.

Facilities that complete at least 40 percent of the survey will receive personalized results for free!
ASCA Content (06/24/25)
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SPONSORED CONTENT
How does your ASC stack up? Get national benchmarks by specialty.

From GI to Ortho, compare your ASC’s specialties to top-performing peers.
Check national benchmarks by specialty here.

Patients taking the new class of weight-loss drugs do not need to stop these medications prior to procedures requiring anesthesia, but they should adhere to longer preoperative fasting times, according to a new multidisciplinary consensus statement. The statement, led by the Society for Perioperative Assessment and Quality Improvement, recommends patients without significant gastrointestinal symptoms associated with glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) should fast from solid foods for 24 hours and stick to clear liquids prior to a procedure requiring anesthesia.
Medscape (06/05/25) Lucy Hicks
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Procision's AI Voice Assistant for ASCs
AI is everywhere in healthcare conversations—but few solutions actually deliver practical value to surgery centers. At Procision, we're changing that. We’ve just launched our AI Voice Assistant to help surgery centers automate patient communication without disrupting the patient experience.

Read the full article to see how it works and why it’s a game-changer for your staff and your patients.

Thank you to everyone who joined us in Denver for the ASCA 2025 Conference & Expo. If you attended the conference, be sure to request your continuing education (CE) credits online via ASCA’s Education & Events Portal. The deadline to request CE credits is next Monday, June 30.

As a reminder, you must complete evaluations for the sessions you attended before you can request CE credits.
ASCA Content (06/24/25)
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A new clinical practice update provides expert guidance on the selection and use of endoscopic lifting agents during endoscopic resection to create a cushion between pre-cancerous lesions and the muscularis propria, elevating lesions before removal. The update reviews agents currently available and offers practical tips for clinicians.
American Gastroenterological Association (06/04/25)
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SPONSORED CONTENT
Eliminating Operational Misalignment That Comes From Growth

Mergers, acquisitions, and revenue-driven growth are a constant for ASCs. Your compliance team is in a unique position to drive consistency and build scalable operations. In a live webinar on Thursday, July 17 at 11 a.m. PT, Attorney Tara Ravi will offer guidance to eliminate the costly delays and non-compliance that often accompanies growth.

Join us this fall for ASCA’s 2025 National Advocacy Day, taking place September 15–17 in Washington, DC.

National Advocacy Day gathers engaged members of the ASC community from across the country to advocate for their facilities and the high-quality care they deliver. It is an excellent opportunity to meet face-to-face with your members of Congress and their staff to educate them about the many benefits ASCs offer and issues currently impacting their ability to provide care.

Learn more and register today!
ASCA Content (06/24/25)
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In its June report to Congress, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, or MedPAC, recommended adopting inflation-based updates to Medicare's physician fee schedule, or PFS. This change would replace the current updates with a fixed, inflation-based formula tied to the Medicare Economic Index, or MEI.
TechTarget (06/12/25) Jill McKeon
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SPONSORED CONTENT
Get Free, Customized Salary Insights for Your ASC

Participate in ASCA’s 2025 Salary & Benefits Survey—it's free, takes less than 15 minutes and provides valuable insights. Facilities that complete at least 40% of the survey receive complimentary personalized reports to support smarter staffing and budgeting decisions.

ASCA’s full Credentialing, Privileging & Peer Review virtual course is now available on demand. This course provides the tools you need to keep your facility compliant and up to date on best practices and the latest guidance.

The course—along with ASCA’s entire suite of virtual education—is included in 2025 ASCA membership.

Register now to get access to this essential course!
ASCA Content (06/24/25)
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A Hartford HealthCare subsidiary has filed for a certificate of need with the state Office of Health Strategy to operate the Surgical Center of Connecticut at 4920 Main St. The filing was made earlier this month by Surgical Center of Connecticut LLC, SCA-Main Street LLC and HHC Surgery Center Holdings LLC because of a change in governance of the Bridgeport surgical center.
Westfair Online (06/18/25) Gary Larkin
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Oregon Governor Tina Kotek signed SB 951 into law on June 9, enacting legislation that has implications for the ownership of healthcare facilities in the state and employment agreements for physicians.

As enacted, SB 951 introduces noteworthy new provisions to state law regarding management services organizations, professional medical entities and noncompetition agreements. Read this Digital Debut to learn more.
ASCA Content (06/24/25)
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Constitution Surgery Alliance (CSA), an independent developer and operator of ambulatory surgery centers, has received a strategic investment from Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe, a leading healthcare and technology investment firm. CSA partners with health systems and surgeons to develop and operate high-quality, patient-centric ambulatory surgery centers.
PR Newswire (06/16/25)
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News summaries © copyright 2025 Smithbucklin
About ASCA

Mission: The Ambulatory Surgery Center Association (ASCA) is the national membership association that represents ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) and provides advocacy and resources to assist ASCs in delivering high-quality, cost-effective ambulatory surgery to all the patients they serve.

About Us: At ASCA, we are eager to help you become better acquainted with our nation's ASCs and the people who own and operate them. We are also eager to help you develop policies on ASC-related issues. If you have questions, please contact us. We'll put you in touch with the experts and, if you like, arrange for you to visit an ASC in your area.

Contact Us: Advertising inquiries should be addressed to Chris Schriever or Alex Yewdell at 202.337.1897 or at advertising@ascassociation.org.

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